This invention relates generally to the field of strap attachment devices and more specifically to a strap attachment for a sports helmet.
Sports helmets such as football helmets are well known and are used to protect a player's head during contact sport activity.
The football helmet has evolved over the years to make playing the sport of football safer for all players. This includes improvements in internal padding, external shell shape and structure as well as face guards and chin straps.
However, there is a deficiency in the prior technology in that standard football helmets are held onto the user's head by means of chin straps that terminate in female snap members that engage male snap members fixedly attached to the outside wall of the helmet. When a football player is engaged in the extreme contact activity of tackling another player, there is the possibility that the male and female snap portions of the strap will become disengaged causing the helmet to fly off of the user's head and leaving the player's head exposed to possible collision with a hard object, such as another players helmet, or with the ground. Additionally, the attachment of the male to female snap fasteners can be difficult because the user does not have the ability to visually see the location of the snap portions during the attachment process. Finally, the common occurrence of wearing gloves when playing the game of football further hinders the user's tactile sense and makes it increasingly difficult for the user to align the female snap fastener portion to the male snap fastener portion.